Rail tool



Sept. 14, 1948.

E. D. JONES RAIL TOOL Filed July 15, 1946 Patented Sept. 14, 1948 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE RAIL TOOL Y j E. D. Jones, Grand J unctionfllenn, Application July 15, 1946, Se1ial No. 683,631

as in aligning the bolt holes in the rails with the holes in the fish plates which are used to I couple them together.

The general object of the invention is to provide a tool of the class described which is simple in construction, easy to manufacture, light in weight but having a very high resistance to buckling, easy to operate, and which is rugged, highly efficient and reliable in use.

Another object is to provide an improved rail tool which does not have to be removed from the rails to enable trains to pass. Another object is to provide a rail tool which may be quickly set up and removed from the rails. Yet another and more specific object is to provide a rail tool of the rod and turnbuckle type in which the rods are stiifenedlaterally to preventthem from buckling when the tool is used for pushing the rails apart.

These and other objects and advantagesof the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when considered with the accompanying drawings which illustrate a preferred construction of the invention.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the tool in place at a rail joint; Fig. 2 is a plan view of the tool in place on the rails; Fig. 3 is a sectional View taken on lines 3-3 of Fig. 2, the tool being shown in end elevation; and Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the rail clamp by which each end of the tool is clamped to the rail.

Referring now to the drawings, the tool comprises a pair of L-shaped rods l and II threaded on both ends, which are adapted to be placed alongside the abutting rail ends 12, I3 on both sides of the rail joint M. The shank portions a, Ha of these rods are arranged in end-toend relation and are coupled together by a turnbuckle l5 which is used to exert a pushing or pulling force on the rods that is correspondingly transmitted to the rail ends. The end portions of the turnbuckle terminate in hexagonal nuts l5a for receiving a spanner wrench Hi.

The foot portions Illb, Nb of the rods extend under the bed flanges lZa, l3a of the rails between adjacent cross-ties l1 and are arranged to be clamped to these flanges by any suitable clamping device.

In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the clamping device for each rod is comprised of fixed and movable clamping jaws l8, l3, re-

4 Claims. (Cl. 254*43') spectively that are holed for assembly on the foot portions Nib, lib. Jaw l8 which is fixed tothe foot portion of the red at the downwardly turned corner of the L such as by welding at 21, includes an upper jaw plate Ida and a lower hemicylindrical jawlilbJ These jaws form a recess zllfor receiving one side ofthe iced flange of the rail.

"The movable jaw i9 li-kewise includes an uppe jaw plate Mia and parallel spaced lower jaw plates I9b that are -disposed transversely and edgewiseto jaw plate 19a. These jaws form a recess 29a for receiving the other sidecof the bed flange of the rail. 1 i

As clearly shown i nFig."2, the bed flanges 12a, Ifla of the rail ends 12, 13 fit between theffixed and movable jaws l8, l9 and the jaws are clamped tightly thereto by nut 21 that is threaded onto the end of the foot portion of the rods, a washer 22 being assembled onthe rod ahead of the nut if desired. The clamping jaws: d8, d9 grip the bed "flange of the rail tightly and the novel arrangement of the upper and lower jaw members [8a, 1811) and 19a, 1-912 prevents the jaws from rotating'as the clamp is tightened.

When the tool has been clamped to the rail ends, and assuming the ends to Cbet-oofar apart, the latter may be pulled together, using wrench IE to rotate the turnbuckle !5 until the bolt holes 1312 in rail end l3 come into alignment with the holes 23a in fish plates 23, so that bolts 24 may be thereafter inserted through the fish plates and rail to thereby connect the rail ends 12 and 13 together.

It will be noted from Fig. 1 that when the tool has been applied to the rails, all parts thereof lie below and away from the rail head portions I20, I30. Thus the tool has the advantage that it does not have to be removed when a rail joint is being worked on in order to permit a train to pass. Furthermore an additional and even more important advantage inherent in applicants rail tool is the safety factor since the tool may be left in place without any danger whatsoever of causing a train to be derailed should the workmen go off the job and forget to remove the tool.

When the tool is used to force the rail end-s apart, a considerable amount of compressional str s is obviously set up in the rods In and H as the latter are pushed on in opposite directions by the turnbuckle action. These stresses create a tendency in the rods to buckle. To prevent this, the rods are stiffened or reinforced in a lateral direction. In the illustrated embodiment, this lateral stiffness is attained through the use of flat stiffener bars 25 projecting laterally from These stiffener bars add but little to the overall weight of the tool but yet so strengthen its resistance to buckling that the rods l and H can be made from a substantially smaller diameter stock than would be possible were the lateral stiffener members to be eliminated. The tool thus has a very favorable strength-weight factor n which not only reduces its cost but also makes it much easier for workmen to carry on the job.

In conclusion, I wish it to be understood that while I have illustrated and described a preferred embodiment of my improved pushing and pulling tool, various changes in the construction and arrangement of parts may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim: 1 1

1. In a tool of the class described for use on abutting rail ends, a pair of rods adapted to be placed in end-to-end relation alongside the rail ends, means clamping the remote ends of said rods to the flange portions of their associated rail ends, a turnbuckle connecting adjacent ends of said rods to thereby exert a pushing or pulling force on said rail end dependent upon the direction of rotation of said turnbuckle, and a transverse bar connected to a medial position on each of said rods, said bars being adapted to be spiked to cross-ties.

2. A tool for use on rail abutting rail ends comprising, a pair of rods arranged to lie in end-toend relation longitudinally of the rail ends, a turnbuckle connecting adjacent threaded. ends of said rods, means for clamping the opposite end of each rod to its associated rail end, and means imparting lateral stiffness to each of said rods intermediate its ends, each said stiffening means comprising a transverse bar adapted to be placed under the rail of a cross-tie, one end of said bar being connected to the associated rod at a medial position thereof and the other end being holed for spiking to the cross-tie.

3. In a tool for use in pushing or pulling abutting rail ends, a pair of L shaped rods adapted to be placed in end-to-end relation longitudinally of the rail ends, the foot portion of each said rod extending under its associated rail, a pair of jaws on the foot portion of each rod, one jaw of each pair being fixed to the foot portion and the other movable thereon for gripping the rail flange between them, means clamping the jaws of each pair tightly to the rail flange, a turnbuckle connecting adjacent ends of said rods to push or pull on the rods, and means imparting lateral stiffness to each rod at a point intermediate its foot portion and said turnbuckle, each said stiffening means comprising a transverse bar connected at one end to the associated rod and adapted to be spiked at the other end to a cross-tie.

4. In a, tool for use in pushing or pulling abutting rail ends, a, pair of L-shaped rods adapted to be placed in end-to-end relation longitudinally of the rail ends, the foot portion of each said rod extending under'its associated rail, a pair of jaws on the foot portion of each rod, one jaw of each pair being fixed to the foot portion and the other movable thereon for gripping the rail flange between them, means clamping the jaws of each pair tightly to the rail flange, a turnbuckle connecting adjacent ends of said rods to push or pull on the rods, and a transverse bar associated with each of said rods for imparting lateral stiffness thereto, each one of said bars being provided with an eye for mounting the same onthe rod and the other end being holed for spiking to a cross-tie.

E. D. JONES.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date a 637,827 Quesenberry Nov. 28, 1899 1,542,213 Bro-ckett June 16, 1925 1,634,664 Harris July 5, 1927 

